Dunkirk

Beat back by German troops to the French port city of Dunkirk, hundreds of thousands of Allied troops wait in desperation for an unlikely deliverance. Over the course of this harrowing week, we witness a French soldier trying to smuggle his way onto a fleeting British carrier, a dogfight between RAF and Luftwaffe pilots, and a civilian and his sons answering their country’s call to aid in the evacuation. Christopher Nolan’s most solemn and serious movie to date is a visually arresting, fluid, even balletic experience told with minimal dialogue and the aid of fine performances including Kenneth Branagh, Mark Rylance, Cillian Murphy, and Tom Hardy. The movie does reach a problem area however when the panoply of the filmmaking itself starts to take precedence over the actual events it is depicting.

*** ½ out of ****

The Founder

Persistent, energetic, and struggling milkshake mixer salesman Ray Kroc (Michael Keaton) is dumbfounded when a San Bernardino restaurant places an order for eight machines when he can barely sell one himself and drives halfway across the country to check out the operation. There he meets the McDonald brothers (Nick Offerman, John Carroll Lynch) and discovers their “fast food” concept in what amounts to a revelation from God, and places all his energies into franchising the restaurant and expanding his burger empire at all costs. The Founder amounts to little more than an unabashed, unashamed two hour McDonald’s commercial that decides it wants to be Citizen Kane in the last ten minutes and helped little by Keaton’s frenetic, tic-conscious performance.

* 1/2 out of ****

A Streetcar Named Desire

After losing the family farm and being run out of town, a fragile, delusional, aging ex-schoolteacher (Vivien Leigh) moves in her pregnant sister’s (Kim Hunter) noisy and humid French Quarter flat and finds herself being bullied, abused, and driven to madness by her crude and brutish brother-in-law (Marlon Brando). Elia Kazan’s screen treatment of Tennessee Williams’ monumental play is stagy and claustrophobic, while showing its age a bit, but still daring and potent with Brando’s revolutionizing and sometimes hammed up performance standing atop a phenomenal cast which also includes the noble and dopey Maldin.

*** ½ out of ****

The Lost City of Z

The story of Percy Fawcett (Charlie Hunnam), a British colonel whose disgraced family name prevented his Army advancement and who, in several perilous trips up the Amazon river, saw a way to redeem it, seek insight into the misunderstood indigenous people, and find a mythic lost jungle city that would prove their advancement. Filmed on a beautiful canvas, James Gray’s somber Amazonian adventure piece is captivating in segments, but languidly paced and probably should have been drawn tauter while ultimately lacking resonance and paling somewhat to the great jungle river works of Coppola, Herzog, or Huston. Though Hunnam gives it an earnest go, I can’t help but think the project would have fared better on another, stronger actor’s shoulders. As for the rest of the cast, Robert Pattinson provides a quieting, stoic presence as Fawcett’s assistant, Miller seems lacking as the worried, progressive minded wife, and Angus Macfayden is memorable as a cowardly national hero who joins one of Fawcett’s expeditions.

*** out of ****

Baby Driver

Mostly mute and traumatized from a childhood accident with a preternatural ability for getaway driving and earbuds constantly playing an array of popular music, an idiot savant (Ansel Elgort) is compelled to work off an exaggerated debt for a crime lord (Kevin Spacey) and, when attempting to emancipate himself, he is targeted along with his waitress girlfriend (Lily James) by psychotic fellow bank job members (Jaime Foxx and Jon Hamm). Another cute and ostensibly hip entry from Edgar Wright is the latest Goodfellas knockoff and adds nothing to the heist movie except bad music. Elgort boasts zero charisma and the rest of cast, with the exception of an amusing Spacey, appear in write-off roles.

** out of ****

The Crucible

Vendettas, paranoia, personal interests, and mass hysteria rule the day in colonial Salem when rumors of witchcraft start circulating the village with a young, calculating girl (Winona Ryder) and her brood of posturing "victims" leading the mass accusations against residents, her aim to remove the wife (Joan Allen) of her former employer (Daniel Day-Lewis), a noble farmer who once fell prey to her advances and must summon the courage to stop this grave injustice. With Arthur Miller writing the script to his own seminal play (which again has relevance regarding today's media) some 40 years on, The Crucible is well-set and properly cast but nonetheless a tone-deaf treatment, even largely so in the Day-Lewis performance, but is truly worth the price of admission just to witness Paul Scofield's supporting turn as the cold and esteemed inquisitor.

** 1/2 out of ****

The Thief of Bagdad (1924 and 1940)

In the first of these two diverging tellings of the Arabian Nights tales, Douglas Fairbanks stars as a beggar and master pickpocket in the Bagdad bazar who becomes completely awestruck at the sight of the princess (Julanne Johnston) and seeks to break into the castle at the same time she is visited by an evil Mongolian sultan and two other loutish princes all trying to win her hand. An Alexander Korda produced (and partially directed by Michael Powell) barely related follow-up sees a feckless King (John Justin) overthrown by his iniquitous right-hand Jafar (Conrad Viedt), finding his purpose in the princess (played by June Duprez also targeted by Jafar), and sharing the fate of an industrious street urchin (Sabu) who happens upon an insolent, all-powerful genie. Raoul Walsh’s 1924 treatment of The Thief of Bagdad is a rousing silent entertainment, boasting an exciting story, remarkable sets, and an engaging Fairbanks performance. The 1940 British update, released to a besieged wartime audience, is a fantastic family entertainment featuring state of the art Technicolor special effects that make you lament the current state of the magic-lacking movies. Sabu, Justin, Viegt and Ingram all leave an imprint.

1924 version: *** ½ out of ****

1940 version: *** ½ out of ****

Withnail & I

Two unemployed, drug addled, alcoholic actors (Richard E. Grant and Paul McGann), living in complete filth and squalor in a London flat in the late 60s retreat to an uncle's countryside manor where they are dogged by the weather, the locals, and an unexpected visit from their forward, flamboyant provider (Richard Griffiths). Bruce Robinson's drawn from real life black comedy is hilarious and humanized with great performances all around, especially Griffiths as Withnail's ostentatious Uncle Monty.

*** 1/2 out of ****

The Double Life of Veronique

Two identical, unrelated women in Paris and Warsaw (both played by Irene Jacob) are nonetheless metaphysically bonded and, when one dies suddenly from a heart condition during a music recital, the other, a music teacher, feels acute grief and sorrow while simultaneously being stalked by an aware puppeteer as part of a social experiment. Unique though specific to the director's canon, Krzysztof Kieslowski's The Double Life of Veronique is marked by its stunning cinematography, resplendent music, and a luminous, nuanced performance from the enchanting Jacob although the opaque subject is not expanded upon and left rather abstract.

*** out of ****

The Quiet American (1958 and 2002)

A jaded British journalist (Michael Redgrave in the original, Michael Caine in the update) covers the French colonialists' war with the communists in 1950s Vietnam and finds his much younger local mistress being swept away by an unassuming, idealistic, and also much younger American aid worker (Audie Murphy and Brendan Fraser) who proves to be something totally different than he initially appears. Graham Greene's cynical story was first adapted by Joseph L. Mankiewicz into a great, depoliticized screenplay that ultimately leaves much less of an impact whereas Philip Noyce's remake keeps much of the contentious politics intact, though this version seems to detract from the main love triangle where our sympathies mostly reside. In both films, it is the wary and consummate lead performances from Redgrave and Caine which make the film worth seeing and Fraser is quite good as well, crafting a humanized, three-dimensional character out of a vapid blueprint that is far beyond Murphy's empty portrayal in the earlier picture.

1958: *** out of ****

2002: *** out of ****

The Man with the Golden Gun

On his own private island buried deep in the seas of Red China, Francisco Scaramanga, the world's most deadly assassin with a just a rare birth mark, hunts the top men of his trade before setting his sights on MI6's top agent who, upon receiving word, treks to Macau, Hong Kong, and Thailand in search of a solar device while bedding his stalker's mistress and a beautiful and jealous fellow agent all before the final showdown. The Man with the Golden Gun is a vapid and cruder than usual 007 entry with Moore still an effete, ineffectual Bond in his second outing. Stupid throwbacks to previous movies don't help and a Lady from Shanghai inspired ending is anticlimactic. The villains and the women continue to be the reasons for these movies with Christopher Lee making a formidable baddie and Britt Eckland and Maud Adams lovely Bond girls.

** 1/2 out of ****

The Beguiled

Well past the turning point of the Civil War, a gravely wounded Dublin born Union conscriptee (Colin Farrell) is discovered on the grounds of a largely deserted Virginia plantation now being utilized as a low enrollment all-girls boarding school. Reluctantly taken in and given aid and shelter by the headmistress (Nicole Kidman), a repressed teacher (Kirsten Dunst), and the curious pupils whom he uses his wiles to charm and create jealousy and dissension before it all pivots back onto him. Sofia Coppola's remake of a 1971 Don Siegel/Clint Eastwood film (unseen by me) is, if a little underwritten, slowly involving and richly atmospheric thanks in large part to the beautiful, foggy and muted cinematography in addition to the wonderful period details. Farrell, Kidman, and Dunst all inhabit their roles superbly.

*** 1/2 out of ****

Split

Three teen-aged girls are kidnapped from the parking lot of a restaurant and held captive by a man (James McAvoy) with dissociative identity disorder, 23 distinct personalities to be exact, who converses with his psychiatrist (Betty Buckley) while trying both to cultivate and ward off the monstrous, superhuman 24th temperament that is quickly emerging. After years of poor reviews, misguided genre exercises, and big budget flops, Split is a mostly welcomed return to form for M. Night Shyamalan thanks largely to an amusing, winning performance from McAvoy, in a turn that could have easily been laughable, Anya Taylor-Joy's presence as the focal victim, and the subplot involving Buckley. The finale is unsatisfying and too simply arrived at, as is a post credits cameo which is supposedly leading to a tie-in feature involving one of the director's previous films.

*** out of ****

It Comes at Night

In a desolate modern world ravaged by plague and just following being forced to dispatch their infected patriarch, a family (Joel Edgerton, Carmen Ejogo, and Kelvin Harrison, Jr.) living in their forested compound is visited by a desperate intruder (Christopher Abbott) who could spell either boon or doom to their dire condition. Following a similar pattern to many recently acclaimed horror films, It Comes at Night starts out promising, crafting a claustrophobic and atmospheric setting but has absolutely no idea where it wants to go, ultimately leading to unremarkable places that would feel right at home on an episode of The Walking Dead.

** 1/2 out of ****

I, Daniel Blake

After suffering a heart attack on the job, a marginalized widowed carpenter (Dave Johns) attempts to maintain his dignity while being forced to jump through hoop after hoop to qualify for disability benefits while befriending a downtrodden single mother (Hayley Squires) up against the same bludgeoning system. With a rich, humanistic performance from Johns, Ken Loach's minimalist story, which resonates all the more in its few powerful moments, hits the nail on the head with its attacks on a steely, uncaring bureaucracy but is surprisingly artificial in the trite scenarios involving Squires. An especially Loachian finale is riotous, solemn, and embraceable.

*** 1/2 out of ****

Diary of a Country Priest

A young, unpracticed cleric (Claude Laydu), dogged by a stomach ailment which threatens his day-to-day duties, deals with indifference, contempt, and threats of scandal from parishioners at his new pastoral posting. From a novel by Georges Bernanos, Diary of a Country Priest is challenging, harsh, protracted, austere, and pristinely filmed, all the elements underlining Robert Bresson's masterful body of work.

*** 1/2 out of ****

Secrets & Lies

A broken London family, including a well-to-do, people pleasing middle class photographer (Timothy Spall), his barren, melancholic wife (Phyllis Logan), his emotionally unbalanced, project housed single parent sister (Brenda Blethyn) and her miserable daughter (Claire Rushbrook), reaches a catharsis when a black optometrist (Marianne Jean-Baptiste) enters their lives, claiming to be the abandoned daughter of the sister. Lengthy and deliberate Mike Leigh effort is emotional and involving with a tremendous cast (really every principle performance is top caliber) and punctuated by sublime moments of revelation and welcomed detours. Spall's culminating speech is both beautiful and transcendent.

**** out of ****

The Great Santini

A decorated Marine fighter pilot (Robert Duvall) commands his family and his oldest son (Michael O'Keefe) in particular with the same fierceness and determination he does his own troops as they adjust to life following their latest move to a Southern military town. Lewis John Carlino trims the fat of Pat Conroy's bloated and overwritten autobiographical novel and winds up with a too sanitized but nonetheless likable look at a dysfunctional father/son relationship. Duvall's ardent and comical role is up there with his best and O'Keefe contributes a surprisingly strong youth performance.
*** out of ****

Get Out

Against his better judgement and the jocular warnings of a friend, a black photographer (Daniel Kaluuya) leaves the city and travels with his white girlfriend (Allison Williams) to meet her moneyed parents (Catherine Keener, Bradley Whitford) at their secluded estate and finds his worst fears realized when backslapping and phony attempts at bonding turn into something far more sinister. Jordan Peele's Get Out makes amusing and sardonic commentary on progressive attitudes towards race but as a horror movie—for which it was heavily billed—is dearly lacking, with way too much set-up, even well after the audience knows what's going on, and a spectacularly unimaginative and routine ending. Kaluuya makes a commiserable and personable lead.

** 1/2 out of ****

The Edge

While vacationing at an Alaskan lodge during a photo shoot, a pragmatic, solitary billionaire (Anthony Hopkins)--with a steel trap mind when it comes to survivalist tidbits--naturally finds himself lost in the wild with a sleek photographer (Alec Baldwin) who may or may not have eyes for his trophy wife (Elle Macpherson) and fortune and might prove a bigger threat than the 2,000 pound, flesh eating Kodiak bear stalking their every move.  Even with its rustic, prepossessing location shooting, exciting action sequences, and rugged subject, The Edge misses the point somewhat by deprioritizing the fact that at its heart this is essentially a two-man David Mamet battle of wills play which is evident in director Lee Tamahori's occasional misdirection of his actors (who are mostly great) and a lack of emphasis on the punchy dialogue.

*** 1/2 out of ****

Primary Colors

A idealistic, small-time staffer (Adrian Lester) is recruited to join the Presidential campaign of a magnetic Democratic Southern governor (John Travolta) and, after quickly believing he may be the real deal, signs on as campaign manager and even more rapidly finds himself covering up his new boss' sexual escapades. When their opponent unexpectedly (and fortuitously) exits the race, an old hand politico (Larry Hagman) steps in, galvanizes his position, and leads the campaign on a muck finding mission led by a deranged but brilliant former ally (Kathy Bates) which leads to dark, compromising places of the American political abyss. Based on a novel by Joe Klein (originally published under Anonymous) detailing Bill Clinton's 1992 run, Primary Colors is an exemplary political satire. With a funny, adept, and ultimately sorrowful script by Elaine May and sharp direction from Mike Nichols, the film knows its territory and contains deeply invested, humanized characters. Travolta's performance is one of his best, Emma Thompson is excellent as the Hillary cipher, Billy Bob Thronton hilarious in the James Carville role, and Bates and Hagman both heartrending in standout performances.
*** 1/2 out of ****

Gentleman's Agreement

A California journalist (Gregory Peck) heads to New York to write for a liberal digest and labors over how to approach his new assignment in exposing anti-Semitism in many variants in society until it hits him: attack it like every one of his acclaimed exposés, by getting down to the ground level, and feign being Jewish himself. Age shows on this Elia Kazan Best Picture Oscar winner and it grows tiresome and overly preachy with a bland Peck at his most rigid. The screenplay however is utterly thorough and explores its subject through many angles and lenses.

** 1/2 out of ****

The 39 Steps

Shots ring out in a London Vaudevillian theater, an attempt to create a distraction by a female agent who finds herself in the flat of one the show’s attendees (Robert Donat). Now, he is thrust into the serpentine plot that takes him to the Scottish Mores where he is both pursuing and pursued by the deadly, clandestine eponymous spy ring. Slyly conceived and brilliantly realized, The 39 Steps is a supreme entertainment that anticipated not just some of Alfred Hitchcock's future work but also inspired many successful, subsequent thrillers.

**** out of ****

20th Century Women

A product of the Depression Era, an older mother and single parent (Annette Bening) attempts to understand her punk influenced adolescent son (Lucas Jade Zumann) who seeks guidance from a sickly artistic tenant (Greta Gerwig), an aloof maintenance man (Billy Crudup), and an advanced peer (Elle Fanning) in 1979 Santa Barbara. Phony, magniloquent Mike Mills production, who took nearly the exact same approach with Beginners (ostensibly depicting his father, here his mother), is the kind of material with appeal solely for West Coast liberals and middle-aged Gen-Xers. Bening delivers a nice performance and helps buoy the film along with Gerwig and Zumann. Sean Porter's photography helps too.

** out of ****

Rules Don't Apply

One of the many starlets (Lily Collins) on Howard Hughes's payroll lives by the stringent rules accorded by the aging, shadowy, and eccentric billionaire (Warren Beatty), which includes not dating your assigned driver and personal spy, in her case a straight-edged, business driven Christian (Alden Ehrenreich). Beatty's self-aggrandizing, first directorial effort in almost twenty years is a strange, tonally shifting, and shamefully bad screwball comedy that only conjures up memories of Scorsese's The Aviator, a vastly superior Hughes picture. Only Ehrenreich keeps the picture afloat.

* out of ****